NEW BEDFORD — Gomes Elementary School on Tuesday kicked off its second annual anti-bullying initiative with a lively musical performance featuring local celebrity Jennel Garcia, a finalist on "The X Factor" television show.

The school's students gathered, in three shifts, in the school's central forum for performances by Garcia, James McBride, a Providence-based rapper performing as Mr. Deep Positivity, and Andrea Carreiro, a music student at UMass Dartmouth, that emphasized standing up to bullying and being true to oneself.

Some of the school's fifth-graders also performed with McBride a song written by Gomes preschool teacher Beverly Tavares titled "Be a Hero."

"I wanted the message to be 'Take a stand,'" said Tavares of the song, which urges listeners to extend a helping hand to bullying victims. "The message needs to be sent out to someone who can actually do something about it."

Tuesday's event kicks off a month-long initiative at Gomes focused on educating students about bullying and how to stop it.

Students will be doing various anti-bullying activities in their classes, including writing essays about how to be a "buddy," not a "bully," and the school is partnering with Safe Zones, a local anti-bullying program, to put up signs around the school, according to Tavares.

"If someone's bullying you, calling you names ... don't let them keep doing it," said McBride. "You've got to tell an adult and get some help."

Mayor Jon Mitchell also made an appearance at the event, urging students to stand up against bullies when they see other students being victimized.

"The bullies do what they do because they want approval from other people," said Mitchell.